


Starlight

by Dragonzzilla



Series: Alexius-Vivian [2]
Category: Warframe
Genre: Babysitting, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Pregnancy, Trans Character, Trans Male Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-24
Updated: 2018-09-24
Packaged: 2019-07-16 15:20:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16088801
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragonzzilla/pseuds/Dragonzzilla
Summary: Baro Ki'Teer babysits the child of a cherished friend.





	Starlight

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Mordu](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mordu/gifts).



Baro strolled underneath shaded leaves, following the winding path between the trees and bushes, his cane clicking against the walkway. It was a beautiful place, a hidden oasis. The surrounding walls were made of red stone and had the impression of being worn over the millennia, but down here, everything was green and fertile. Down here, life flourished that would otherwise perish in the harsh conditions of the desert. He then felt a stirring in his womb, and he stopped, lovingly rubbing the swell of his belly. "You are getting strong, _habaybi_." They fidgeted inside him, testing the confines of their prison and home. "I cannot wait to show you this place." It reminded him so much of home. He hadn't set foot on Mars in years, but he would never forget the first time he saw one of the hidden oases that his people revered. He was only a child then, but it left a lasting impression, one he would carry to his grave. He had tried his best to recreate that same sense of tranquility and peace he felt then. Actual stone was imported from the surface of Mars, along with a variety of endemic species that thrived only under certain conditions, all procured at great expense. But money was no object to Baro Ki'Teer, and he had no shortage of patience. It took several years and cost a fair amount, but it paid off. It looked like home, and when he shut his eyes and simply listened to the babbling fountains, the calm waters, the croaking of frogs, he was transported to another world, another lifetime. He breathed deeply the smell of water and life.

"Master Ki'Teer?" chimed a mechanical voice. Along came a Sentinel with a beautiful Prisma sheen, but this was no mere ordinary drone. It was a platform for an advanced intelligence, a Cephalon. "Are you well?"

"I'm fine, Calisto. You needn't worry so much about me."

"You are expecting twins," the Cephalon said. "It is my business to worry."

Baro pouted his lips. "Is it also your business to pester me? I prefer to be left to my thoughts.

"I am always concerned for your well-being. It is only fair." Baro had found Calisto in an Orokin computer system in one of his forays into the void. He was damaged and corrupted, but Baro managed to save the best parts of him, and with the aid of Cephalon Suda and Simaris, he made an eventual recovery. Although his memories and any Orokin secrets he knew were lost forever, his personality was intact, and he felt indebted to Baro ever since. His assistance in running Baro's private relay was invaluable, overseeing a thousand and one things that Baro could not manage on his own. He was still in the mainframe, but he could divest a small part of himself into a Sentinel to provide a 'face'. "I trust that the temperature and humidity are acceptable?" he asked.

"It is splendid, thank you." While Baro sought to recreate a small piece of his homeworld, he certainly didn't miss the dry heat. Everything was closely monitored and regulated by Calisto to ensure the place wasn't as inhospitable as the real thing. "Now," Baro said, moving along the path. "Where oh where has the star-child ran off to?"

"Do you truly wish to know? I can easily locate her—"

"Where's the fun in that?" Baro mused, resuming his pace. Calisto floated beside him just over his shoulder. "We'll find her in good time."

She found them first. "Uncle Baro! Uncle Baro!" Amara came running, clearly excited about something, holding something in her hands. Normally, he would rush to meet her and scoop her up, but far along into his pregnancy as he was, that sadly wasn't an option. He waited patiently, leaning on his cane for support, as Amara hurried over, bouncing with youthful energy.

"What have you found, starlight?" There was nothing here that he didn't place himself, but it was heartwarming to see a child so excited about something, so he played the part of a curious adult.

"I caught something!" she answered. "Peanut Butter was stalking it, but I saved it!" As if summoned by the very mention of its name, the pygmy kavat emerged from the bushes, quietly padding along. It came and rubbed its head against Amara's leg, purring all the while. Amara, meanwhile, was bursting with excitement. The little girl opened her hands a little, just enough to get a peek inside. "Look!" she said, and Baro looked. It was a fat desert frog, totally harmless. It croaked indignantly, protesting its entrapment.

"You're such a noble soul for saving the frog from the kavat's appetites." Baro was a master of pointed complements, but he wouldn't dare belittle a child, let alone one as sweet as Amara.

"Peanut Butter didn't want to hurt it!" she claimed. "He just wanted to follow it. Didn't you, Peanut Butter?" She looked down at the kavat, who mowed noncommittedly.

"I'm sure," he responded, eyeing the little black beast. It might've been smaller and more sociable than a battle-ready kavat, but the instinct to hunt was still there. He didn't want to separate Amara from her beloved pet, but he'd need to keep an eye on the little brute, lest some of Baro's expensive menagerie disappear. As a matter of fact... He spoke to Calisto in an aside. "Keep an eye on the kavat while it's in here."

"Of course, Master Ki'Teer."

He turned back to Amara. "Now, put the frog down and let him hop away. I have something to show you."

"Ooo!" She gently set the frog back on the ground, and it hopped away, quickly disappearing into the bushes. Peanut Butter seemed interested in following it, but as soon as Baro started walking, the kavat followed behind Amara like a shadow. Amara's arm wrapped around Baro's own, and she went slowly to match his pace. They went up a gentle incline, following the pathway up and out of the conservatory, taking a small elevator up.

The ride was blissfully short, and when the doors opened, Amara gasped. The observatory looked out onto a breathtaking view of the Void. Phantom stars shimmered through a veil of thinned space while great arms of cosmic dust stretched for millions of miles like an impossibly huge web. Baro often came here to reflect in private.

"It's so pretty," Amara said.

"Indeed," Baro agreed, allowing a smile to touch his lips. "Come and sit with me, starlight. I still have something for you."

They sat down on a couch in the middle of the room, Amara sitting next to him, still enthralled by the view. The kavat jumped up and settled on a pillow beside its owner. Baro looked to Calisto. "Would you please?" The Sentinel whirred, and a box materialized in Baro's hands, which he presented to Amara.

"What is it?" Amara asked.

"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise."

Amara's curiosity won out and she opened the box. Inside laid a beautifully-made handheld telescope with golden etchings.

"It's a spyglass," Baro explained, as she tenderly removed it from the box. "Ancient seafarers used these to help see faraway things." Such a thing was an antique in these modern times of spacefaring, but it was new. "The lenses are made out of Prisma crystals to let you see through the Void. Have a look."

Amara wasted no time putting it to the test, peering into the Void and through the thinned fabric of space where distant places touched. With it, she would be able to see worlds outside of the solar system, stars that only appeared as distant lights, colorful nebulas that defied the uneducated belief that space was purely black, and other things that defied imagination. The whole universe laid before Amara.

"Seeing anything worthwhile, _habibti_?" Baro asked, resting one hand on his belly and petting the kavat with the other.

Amara didn't immediately respond, still looking through the spyglass. "Space is _big_ ," she said finally. "Almost as big as you, Uncle Baro!" She looked decidedly impish at that moment.

Baro feigned offense, covering his mouth. "Are you calling me _fat_ , little starlight?"

"Not fat, Uncle Baro! Just _big_."

"Well, I could always gobble you up like a witch!" He launched his attack as quick as a viper, tickling her. Amara giggled and screamed in delight, but Peanut Butter did not share her glee and quickly relocated away from the ruckus. Baro pressed the assault, finding and exploiting particularly ticklish spots. "I'll gobble you up like a dune witch! Then I'll be really _fat_!" He cackled madly like a demented witch from one of his mother's stories, but Amara only laughed louder in response.

When the both of them finally stopped laughing, Baro affectionately booped Amara's nose the way his mother did when he was a child. "I haven't laughed like that in a long time, starlight. Thank you."

"I didn't mean to call you fat, Uncle Baro."

"I know." His hand went to his belly. "I _have_ gotten quite big," he admitted.

"I can't wait to play with them," Amara mused.

"Once they're old enough," Baro promised. "You'll make a fine cousin."

"I wonder what it's like, having brothers and sisters." Her sixth birthday was coming up, and so far she was Vivian's only child. "Do you have any brothers or sisters, Uncle Baro? Do you have any family?"

For a moment, melancholy infringed upon his splendid mood. It wasn't her fault, she didn't know what he'd been through. Still, it was a sad reminder. "I did, once. I had a mother and a father and they loved me very much." Amara wasn't dumb, but he saw no need in burdening the child. "You're very lucky to have such loving fathers, little starlight." He gently mussed Amara's hair.

"You're family too, Uncle Baro!" she said. "You're my uncle!"

Baro was thankful that he wore a mask, otherwise, she might've seen a tear and that simply wouldn't do. "You are so sweet, _habibti_."

"You're my _favorite_ uncle. You gave me Peanut Butter!" She picked up the kavat and held him tight in her arms. The kavat only purred. Absurd name aside, he was a remarkable specimen, a rare pygmy kavat bred for companionship instead of combat, exceedingly docile and patient, but also loyal and protective—which made them extremely desirable as pets and therefore expensive. But what was the point of wealth if you didn't use it? Baro bought the little beast for Amara's third birthday. He would always treasure her reaction, the look of pure joy on her face when she realized what Baro had brought. She immediately fell in love with the kitten. Then Baro asked what its name was going to be. He wasn't asking much of a three-year-old, but he expected something befitting a creature of its pedigree. Shadow, perhaps, to match its black hide. He... didn't expect the response that he got. "Peanut Butter!" the little girl had answered, and for a moment, Baro was incredulous. "That isn't a _real_ name," he told her, but then the stern look on Vivian's face, who had been sitting behind Amara until then, made him rethink his statement. He quickly saved himself, continuing, "—on Mars. But it's a perfectly good name everywhere else." The name had stuck ever since.

Oh, Vivian, lovely Vivian. Even with a look of reproval, he was beautiful. Baro could never explain his fascination with the Tenno, even now that they had been friends for more than a decade. Well, perhaps 'friends' wasn't the right word, but Baro didn't babysit just anyone's child. For lack of a better word, he had something of a crush on Vivian. Baro associated with the richest and most popular people of the free solar system and had dealt with many Tenno, but none of them left him smitten as Vivian had. Vivian, in turn, was quick to realize the advantages of being in Baro's good graces. Baro should've realized that he was playing favorites, but they enjoyed their time together and came to bond with one another. But the child sitting next to him wasn't his own. Amara was the product of Vivian and Alexius, another Tenno, but Baro never envied Alexius. He never disliked him in the slightest, and in fact, encouraged their relationship. It was plain to see that Alexius was good for Vivian, and if Vivian was happy, so was Baro. That was why he was all too happy to babysit Vivian's wonderful daughter, even now, expecting as he was.

He felt movement inside his womb, punctuated by a sharp kick. "Do you want to feel them moving, _habibti_?"

Amara's eyes widened in wonder and she moved closer, putting a hand on his belly. "They like to move a lot," she commented after a while.

"Indeed. They can't wait to meet you."

"Well, I can't wait to meet them!" She put her ear against Baro's belly. "Hello!" she said. "I'm Amara, and I'm your big cousin! Can you hear me?"

Baro chuckled. "They're not very talkative just yet, _habibti_."

"I know. I was just making sure." She had a puzzled look for a moment as if she had just realized something. "If you're their papa, who's their dad?"

He laughed again. "Who said they have a _dad_? They could have a _mom_." 

Amara's mouth tightened, expressing disbelief. "Because you like my papa a bunch."

Was it that obvious? "You cut me to the quick, little one. But I like boys and girls."

She pouted. "I'll find out! You wait!"

"I'm sure you will, starlight. I have no reason to doubt your detective skills."

"Either way, I bet they love you! My dad and papa love each other very much."

Baro nodded in agreement. "Your parents were made for each other." He turned his attention again into the endless expanse of the cosmos. The universe was vast and full of limitless possibility, and through no short order of miracles, everything led to this moment. There were so many things that went wrong in Baro's life, words he wished he could take back, decisions he regretted. But right here, right now, he was happy. He wouldn't trade this for anything. "I love you, little starlight."

"I love you too, Uncle Baro!" She hugged him.

They sat and watched the stars.

**Author's Note:**

> Wait, I actually completed a story in a few days? MADNESS. Such productivity is unheard of! Anyway, take this cute shit I wrote for my boyfriend using some headcanons of ours. Baro is Amara's godfather, and he loves her very much. Inspired by a commission from http://undergroundwubwubmaster.tumblr.com/


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